Thursday, March 17th
Mile 144.3 stealth campsite to Stecoah Gap
6.2 miles
150.5 total miles
Today is my 60th birthday! I have hiked 150.5 miles! I’m very proud of myself and hope I can continue to do this without injury.
I packed up my tent in the wind. After pulling two of the eight stakes out my tent went airborne! I really wish I had a picture/video of it. It was comical, but a little annoying. I was trying to get everything done quickly without extra dirt. It had rained during the night and the tent was still wet. So wet tent, flying around campsite, equals mud.
The day started off hiking straight up again. Cheoah Bald would have been stunning if it hadn’t been fogged in by clouds. You have to take in the mountain vistas when you can. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.
The vistas appeared when the sun came out. I was very happy to see the sun again since the trail dries up and its easier to hike. There was a couple of tough spots today. One huge
rock had to be traversed by being on your bottom. I still ended up falling, but on my arm and shoulder. I have a couple of bruises from that fall. The bruise on my arm is swollen and sore.
Another part of the trail had a very large log with a mud trail underneath it. The only way I could get through was to crawl in the mud. Lol! It wasn’t my greatest trail day. I was covered with mud! A year ago, I would have been aghast at being so dirty. I pride myself on cleanliness and especially having a clean and organized house. Now I’m living outside for six weeks and crawling in the mud.
As I made my way off the trail at Stecoah Gap, I was sung Happy Birthday by 10 hikers who were enjoying their lunches. It made me so happy to hear my birthday acknowledged by my fellow hikers. Mark had made me reservations for a cabin to celebrate. I’m in a rustic, but comfortable cabin. Tomorrow will be a day off to rest. Rain is predicted so it will be nice not to be in it.
The innkeepers brought me an Irish meal and a piece of cake with a candle for my birthday. It was so sweet of them.
2 Comments
Terri Hall
March 20, 2022Happy Birthday to you.
You got mud on your shoes
Your camp tent went flying
Now it's time for a snooze.
(Boy, that was reaching...)
Leave a Reply